Smith College (MA) has distributed reusable metal water bottles to students this year after announcing that disposable cups will no longer be available in the dining halls. The College has also eliminated paper bags at a campus store and made reusable canvas bags available for purchase.

The University of Connecticut has started the Co-op Cares Bag Program, which is intended to reduce the use of plastic bags and promote environmentalism. For each customer who declines a bag, the Co-op will donate 5 cents – the average cost of a plastic bag – toward one of four charities, including the UConn Foundation’s Green Campus Fund. Customers are given a wooden token to put in collection bins for the charity of their choice.

A University of Missouri graduate student has started a composting program that serves to reduce the amount of food waste by 2,000 pounds per week and fertilize two community gardens on campus. As part of the program, Adam Saunders, the student who starting the composting program, and his class of students and volunteers collect the food scraps twice per day from a campus dining hall and tote them on a bicycle trailer to a community garden where they are mixed with manure and, eventually, turned into compost. Saunders hopes to expand the program to include more dining halls in the future.

The University of Notre Dame (IN) has launched 'Game Day Recycling,' a new program designed to make recycling easier for the ND tailgating crowd. As part of the program, students pass out recycling bag in each of the tailgating lots at every game; additional bags are made available at recycling stations placed on lampposts; and recycling bins are available across campus and in the stadium. Additionally, all recyclables go in the same bin. The new program was launched after a successful pilot program during last year's football season.

Concordia University (QC) has launched a large-scale composting system that collects organic waste and composts it on-site. Within 5 years, Concordia plans to be composting 100 tons of organic waste annually. The previous smaller composting systems operated at the university could only handle fruit and vegetable waste, but the new automated thermophilic system is designed to allow for the processing of dairy, meat, and grain products. Ohio University has installed an on-campus in-vessel composter, a unit that will receive up to 50 percent of its energy needs from a rooftop solar array. The University expects to divert up to a 25 percent of its solid waste from the landfill. This includes food waste, biodegradable packaging materials, landscaping waste, and other organic materials. The unit, which is designed to convert waste to soil in 14 days, is expected to be in full operation this fall.

Eastern University (PA) has signed an agreement with Allied Waste, a local recycling company, to offer single streamed recycling on campus. The new system will allow Eastern to accept paper, cardboard, plastics 1 through 7, paper egg cartons, and aluminum cans. The University has also started an effort to recycle used batteries on campus. Small blue recycling bins for batteries have been placed next to the single stream bins. The University of Delaware has also begun a sing-stream recycling project. The pilot program will allow Facilities to test single-stream before implementing a campus-wide launch, while simultaneously exploring ways to reduce costs and improve performance. Goals of the pilot project include raising the recycle diversion rate at single stream locations to 30 percent; improving faculty, student, staff, and visitor access to recycling receptacles; creating a simple, user-friendly system; and issuing and communicating clear recycling guidelines to the campus community.

The University of Georgia has announced plans to pilot a tailgator recycling program for this fall's football season. UGA has contracted American Stadium Services to circulate through North Campus tailgating areas to collect recyclables before kickoff and up until halftime. The company plans to recycle glass, aluminum, plastic, and paper. If the pilot program is successful, UGA might expand the program to include the rest of the tailgating area.

A University of Wisconsin student group dedicated to sustainability on campus, REthink Wisconsin, has partnered with UW athletics to start recycling at football games. The organizers hope that the initiative, "Wear red, think green, Badgers recycled," will recycle 30,000 plastic bottles.

Baylor University (TX) has announced plans to expand its recycling program to include athletic events and campus offices. Recycling bins will be placed at strategic locations around Baylor athletic complexes when a game is taking place. In addition to the containers, food vendors will be requested to recycle cardboard boxes, clean paper, and plastic as they prepare their booths prior to each game. After the event, cleaning crews will remove recyclables left over in stands. The University will offer recycling at football, basketball, softball, volleyball, tennis, and baseball, with other athletic events to be incorporated at a later time. Additionally, over the next month, the first 400 recycling containers will be placed at various offices on campus. An additional 200 bins will be added at a later date. The containers will be used to collect cardboard, white paper, colored papers, plastics, aluminum and tin cans.

Loyola University New Oreleans (LA) has expanded its recycling program by installing blue bins at the entrances to all campus buildings. The recycling bins accept aluminum and tin cans. Additionally, the University's cleaning service has placed 40 office paper collection bins throughout campus.

The University of Maryland College Park has launched "Feed the Turtle," a new recycling program for home football games that is part of a campus-wide initiative to green the University. The program will recycle bottles, cans, and cardboard, and compost food waste and biodegradable packaging. In all, more than 50 tons of material is expected to be diverted from landfills. If successful, the program will be rolled out to other Athletic Department venues on campus.

Western Michigan University has created a system that allows campus members to submit Temporary Appointment Forms and Incidental Payment Forms online. The change from paper to electronic forms took place in late July.

Yale University (CT) has started a pilot program to compost waste from three dining halls on campus. The initiative, which is being led by Yale's recycling coordinator, works with a local waste management company who picks up food waste from the three halls and hauls it to a composting facility nearby. The food takes about 90 days to turn into soil.

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga has launched a new recycling program on campus. The University partnered with a local recycling center to provide bins for the students, faculty, and staff to recycled plastic, paper, and aluminum cans.

Brevard Community College's (FL) 25 member Green Team has received Keep Brevard Beautiful's annual Recycling Award. The team has recycled more than 35 tons of paper on campus since the program's launch in September 2007.

The University of Colorado at Boulder has announced the "Ralphie's Green Stampede" zero-waste and carbon-reduction program at Folsom Field, the University's football stadium. The goal is to move toward zero-waste at Folsom Field during the football season and invest in local carbon-reduction projects to match energy used to power the stadium, for team travel, and other football-related energy use. CU hopes to recycle or compost at least 90 percent of the waste generated at Folsom Field this year. Accordi

Macalester College (MN) has begun a new program that allows graduates to donate their caps and gowns to a local high school. This year, students donated 109 caps and 130 graduation gowns, approximately 1/3 of the gowns worn at graduation. The program, which was initiated by a 2008 Macalester graduate, saved the local high school over $2,000.

Washington State University Facilities Operations will introduce single stream recycling campus wide in early August. Recyclables at the WSU campus will be collected as co-mingled, with the exceptions of corrugated cardboard, white paper and glass, which will still be collected separately. WSU officials hope that the new program will increase the volume of recycling materials collected. The implementation of single stream collection follows a pilot program that started in February 2008.

Northland College (WI) has established a new collection center for a variety of hard-to-recycle items. Members of the Northland community and the general public will be able to recycle used non-alkaline batteries other than car batteries, used cell phones, and spent computer printer ink cartridges. The center will also collect used clothing that is still in good condition. Chartwells, the food service provider at the college, helped to establish the new recycling center.

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock has expanded its recycling program to include all types of paper. In the past, students, faculty, and staff have only been able to recycle white paper in bins throughout campus. Now, the UALR community can recycled colored paper, card stock, magazine, cardboard, and paper sacks as well. Additionally, recycling bins for aluminum and plastic have been placed in areas of high traffic to encourage students, faculty, and staff to recycle their drink cans and bottles.

Planet Aid held its first annual College Initiative this year, rescuing close 13,000 pounds of clothing and shoes. Rowan University, Montclair State University, Rider University, and the State University of New York in New Paltz students, faculty, and staff all participated in Planet Aid's event.

The National Recycling Coalition and The Coca-Cola Company have announced the recipients of their Spring 2008 Recycling Bin Grant program. 23 of the 75 grant recipients were colleges and universities. Recipients were chosen based on a number of criteria, including where bins are likely to have the most impact on recovering beverage containers from the waste stream, ability of recipients to sustain their program in the future, and intention to support collection programs with recycling education and promotion.

The University of Mississippi's campus recycling program and the Oxford Recycling Department recently began an effort to expand the community's recycling program. The partnership has produced an increased number of drop-off recycling areas that are more accessible to students.

Rowan University (NJ) has received the 2008 Excellence in Education Award, given in recognition of the University's commitment, enthusiasm and community pride through cleanups, educational programs, or projects that encourage the proper handling of solid waste. The New Jersey Clean Communities Council, the organization that presented the award, recognized Rowan for its "Clean and Green Day" a regularly held event that engages students, faculty and staff in cleaning up the campus and planting shrubs and flo

Students at Loyola College in Maryland donated clothing, dishes, small appliances, school supplies, and non-perishable food items to local non-profit agencies as they moved out of the residence halls this year. The College created a website for the "Good Stuff Campaign" to coordinate the two week collection. Lafayette College (PA) also held a move out donation campaign in which they collected more than 5,000 pounds of unopened food, clothing, personal, and household items, as well as a truckload of furnit

Michigan State University has announced its plans to begin an Environmental Stewardship Program this summer to help the institution reduce its environmental footprint. Members of the program are tasked with looking into the ways to reduce energy consumption on campus and ways to reduce the amount of trash the University produces. As part of the program, recycling bins will be placed in all of the residence halls starting this fall and in the academic buildings in January of 2009. The initiative is part of the University's membership in the Chicago Climate Exchange, which requires MSU to produce 6 percent less greenhouse gas emissions by 2010 at the campus power plant than in 2000.

Biocycle Magazine has published an article on Allegheny College's (PA) sustainability initiatives. The article describes Allegheny's Center for Economic and Environmental Development (CEED), composting program, and commitment to climate-neutrality. According to the article, CEED projects have included watershed protection programs with area elementary and secondary schools; the Environmental Health initiative, which surveys the risks and assesses the damage of environmental factors on the health of the community; the Strategic Environmental Management Initiative, which works with area businesses to reduce costly waste streams and reinvent and promote the use of sustainable products and production processes; and the Sustainable Forestry Project that brings local forest landowners and forestry professionals together to improve woodlot management practices, and substantially increase the economic contribution of the wood products industry in the region. The article also describes the College's composting program, which composts 800 – 1000 pounds per day of kitchen prepared food waste from one dining hall, and its commitment to climate neutrality through the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment.

Lesley University (MA) students recently donated 15 boxes of gently used clothing and shoes and 4 boxes of craft supplies, school supplies, dishware, desk lamps, un-opened toiletries, pantry items and more to two local aid organizations. The initiative, "Dump and Go," took place during spring move out. Similarly, Dartmouth College (NH) students recently began the "Sustainable Move-Out" program, an initiative where the College collects unwanted items from students moving out of the residence halls and Gree

The University of New Mexico recently won an award from the New Mexico Recycling Coalition for the Best Community-Based Recycling Program. The recycling program was nominated for holding education environmental fairs to increase awareness of pollution prevention activities, for holding e-waste events and for offering tours to elementary and middle school students to educate them about recycling. The award nomination cites the program for great customer service, pointing out the stripping of old refrigerators into recyclable component parts, and spreading the word about a new market for recycled Styrofoam. Additionally, the UNM Recycling Program won 10 bins in a competition co-sponsored by the National Recycling Coalition and Coca Cola.

The University of Wisconsin-Superior Campus Sustainability group has developed "The Art of Garbage," a program in which UWS art students take regularly discarded materials and turn them into art. The "Art of Garbage" exhibition is expected to open in September 2008. The initiative is part of UWS's participation in the American College and University Presidents' Climate Commitment.

ConnectEdu, a curriculum, college, and career planning information technology company, recently launched StudentsPlantTheSeed.com, a website aimed at reducing the amount of paper used during the college application process. The website provides paper-reducing methods for college admissions and a petition for high school administrators and higher education institutions to participate in the initiative.

Suffolk University (MA) students recently donated 5,500 pounds of unwanted goods to two local organizations during move out. The Dump and Run Program allowed students to donate clothes, shoes, furniture, toiletries, and other supplies to serve 16 families. Students were also able to donate food to a local service center as part of the program. Likewise, New York University recently completed its Green Apple Move Out collection project where students donated linens, clothing, electronics, and more. Program Coordinators and volunteers collected the refuse of 5,600 students in 10 residence halls for donation to local charities. While the final tonnage has yet to be counted, the coordinators expect the amount of donated items to exceed 25,000 tons.

Maharishi University of Management (IA) recently announced plans to move its vermicomposting program to a larger space. The new space will provide hands-on experience in composting and vermicomposting for students. The end product will be used on the University's organic farms, the student garden, and campus landscapes.

Purdue University (IN) and Indiana University recently completed their end of the year move-out collections in which unwanted dorm room items were donated to local collection agencies. Purdue's "Project Move Out" expanded this year to include donations from a nearby neighborhood, whereas in previous years, the initiative only included residence hall student donations. Students from both schools were able to donate clothing, shoes, cleaning supplies, electronics, books, furniture, laundry soap, winter coat

The Los Angeles Community College District (CA) recently launched a new recycling program at Los Angeles Valley College with plans to expand to the District's nine campuses. The program is part of a comprehensive plan to bring the District closer to its goal of becoming zero-waste, and will include clearly marked bins in every classroom and office space, as well as more user-friendly outdoor receptacles. To get the program off to a good start, campus clubs will be holding big visibility and educational events to raise awareness on campus for the new program and to make sure students start using it.

The University of Florida recently launched "Think Before You Ink," a campaign to reduce the amount of pages faculty, students, and staff print and/or copy on campus. The campaign has three separate parts: Save the Paper, Print to Web, and Printer Certification. Save the Paper is designed to reduce the waste and inefficiency associated with campus photocopies and printouts. Print to Web, which is scheduled to launch in the coming weeks, will encourage the use of the Internet and e-mail for distribution o

Columbia University (NY) recently began piloting RecycleBank, a program that weighs recycling and pays the recycler for the amount recorded. Each student can obtain a RecycleBank card, and when they take their recycling to the closest kiosk, they swipe their card and collect points. These points can then be spent at participating local and national merchants such as ITunes and Chipotle. The program, which was designed by a Columbia graduate, was originally designed to be used in cities; it has now been modified to be used by campuses.

Portland Community College, Rock Creek (OR) recently began a vermicomposting program. An estimated 40,000 worms help to break down about 650 pounds of pre-consumer food waste per month within a large composting bin which was paid for with part of a $12,500 state grant. After the food has completely broken down, it is added to the college's organic learning garden. Vegetables grown in the garden are used in the cafeteria's food service program. The composting program has also been incorporated into college courses, ranging from health to environmental sciences to organic gardening. Students also plan to plant two plots in the learning garden to see how they respond to the worm compost.

RecycleMania wrapped up its 2008 competition with 58.6 million pounds of recyclables and organics recovered from 400 colleges and universities across the U.S. For the 2008 competition, schools were divided into two divisions, those participating across their entire campus (Whole Campus Division) and those competing with only a subsection (Partial Campus Division). Within each division, schools chose to participate in any of eight categories. Schools that participate in both the Per Capita Classic, which recognizes the institution with the largest amount of recyclables per person, and the Waste Minimization competition, which recognizes the institution with the lowest amount of waste per person, can earn the title of RecycleMania Grand Champion. This year, Kalamazoo College (MI) achieved a recycling rate of 58.93 percent and was crowned the RecycleMania Grand Champion in the Whole Campus Division for excelling in source reduction, waste prevention and recycling. In the Partial Campus Division, California State University, San Marcos claimed the Grand Champion first place for the fourth year in a row, recycling 75.69% of its waste stream. North Lake College (TX), Northwest State Community College (OH), Stanford University (CA), Rutgers University (NJ), Stephens College (MO), Oregon State University, Mills College (CA), Rhode Island School of Design, and United States Coast Guard Academy (CT) were also awarded first place in specific categories.

The Georgia Institute of Technology recently received the 2008 American Forest and Paper Association College and University Recycling Award. AF&PA chose to recognize Georgia Tech for their innovative and creative recycling program. Since the recycling program began at Georgia Tech in 1996, recycling has been successfully integrated into virtually all components of campus life. Last year, the school recovered more than 376 tons of paper products for recycling. AF&PA’s awards program recognizes outstanding school, business, and community recycling efforts.

Loyalist College (ON) recently launched a recycling program. As an incentive, on the opening day of the program, environmentally-friendly prizes were given to students who recycled or chose to do something green for the day.

The University of Arkansas recently began Recycling with the Razorbacks, a program that places green recycling boxes at all home football and basketball games. During the football season, clean-up crews collected more than 36.5 tons of recyclables and reduced the amount of trash going to the landfill to only 61.5 tons.

The Indiana University Task Force for Sustainability is holding a contest for the best recycling bin design. The project is intended to raise awareness about the importance of student participation in a successful campus-wide recycling system. The top 10 winning designers will get the chance to paint their artwork on one of the recycling bins to be displayed throughout campus. The decorated bins will serve as the first-ever outdoor recycling receptacles.

The University of British Columbia hosts a Chemical Exchange Database in which scientists on campus can obtain excess research chemicals from other UBC laboratories. Since most chemicals can only be ordered in bulk, the database allows scientists to post both opened and unopened chemicals for others to use at no charge since the University has already paid for them. The database, launched in 2004, processed 300 exchanges (1,500 kilograms in chemicals) last year alone and has helped to save an estimated $74,500 in disposal and purchasing costs. The initiative is the result of an effort made by the Sustainability Office, the Department of Health Safety and Environment, and the Health Research Resource Office.

The University of Southern Indiana will implement a recycling program in campus housing. The program will feature six recycling stations and is expected to start in mid February. The program is the result of a grant provided by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management.

A student group at San Diego State University (CA) recently started a recycling program on campus. Success Enabled Pilots, a leadership and academic organization, volunteered to pick up sorted recycling from bins placed outside residence halls, Greek houses and residences within one mile of campus. Bins have also been placed at a nearby apartment complex to serve as a community collection location. Additionally, the group plans to hand out energy-efficient light bulbs to those who use the service.

The Michigan State University Board of Trustees authorized building a new recycling facility on campus. The facility will triple the amount of materials currently being recycled by allowing the university to expand recycling collection in all buildings. The recycling facility will cost approximately $13.3 million and will pay for itself in 12 years. The Board also heard 26 recommendations to reduce MSU's ecological footprint presented by the Environmental Stewardship Systems Team, which is made up of faculty, staff, and students. The team recommended that MSU improve the way the campus monitors and tracks material waste, schedule classes more efficiently to reduce heating and energy costs in buildings, develop a "green" certification program for units and departments, and reduce energy use in all campus buildings by 9 percent through reducing heating, ventilation, and cooling system running time.

The University of Alabama is planning to implement a recycling program across campus. The program, which comes after a successful pilot phase, will first be implemented in the residences halls, academic buildings, and administrative buildings. Once the program has enough support, the number of bins will be increased and the athletic buildings will receive bins as well.

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The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education is a membership association of colleges & universities, businesses, and nonprofits who are working together to lead the sustainability transformation. Learn more about AASHE's mission.